7: Crab Bites 1 package English muffins 1 small can (6 oz.) crab meat, drained 1 small jar (4 oz.) sharp cheese spread (preferably Old English) 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened 1/2 tsp onion powder Mix crab meat, cheese and butter together. Spread on English muffins and freeze on baking sheet for one hour. With a sharp knife, cut each muffin into 4 pieces. Place wedges in a plastic bag and freeze. When ready to use, place on a baking sheet and bake 15 - 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven until golden and hot. You can also cut the muffins in quarters before spreading with the cheese mixture. Then freeze. They store in the freezer for several months.

11: Green Bean Casserole 2-10 oz boxes of French style green beans 2 TBL butter 2 TBL flour 1 cup sour cream 1/4 pound Swiss cheese grated 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1 tsp sugar 1/2 tsp grated onion 1/2 cup Ritz crackers crushed 2 TBL butter Cook green beans in boiling water for 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and return to heat for a few minutes to evaporate as much water as possible. Make sauce by melting butter and adding flour and spices. Remove from the heat and add cheese in small pieces. Add sour cream. Mix beans and sauce. Place in buttered shallow casserole dish. Mix cracker crumbs and butter. Sprinkle on top Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. Can refrigerate after placing in dish before crumbs are added. Take out of the fridge ahead of time and warm for about 30 minutes. Add crumbs and cook another 15 minutes.

13: Roasted Broccoli with Lemon Garlic Sauce 1 pound broccoli florets 2 TBL olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 TBL butter 1 tsp minced garlic 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest 1 to 2 TBL fresh lemon juice 2 TBL pine nuts, toasted -optional Preheat oven to 475 degrees. In a large bowl, toss the broccoli with the oil and salt and pepper to taste. Arrange the florets in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast, turning once, for 12 minutes, or until just tender. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and lemon zest and heat, stirring, for about 1 minute. Let cool slightly and stir in the lemon juice. Place the broccoli in a serving bowl, pour the lemon butter over it and toss to coat. Scatter the toasted pine nuts over the top.

17: Chicken and Shrimp Marsala 1/4 cup butter 1/4 cup chopped green onions 1 clove garlic, minced (plus 1 for shrimp) 1 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 6 chicken breast halves skinned, boned and halved 1/2 cup flour 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce 1/4 cup Marsala wine 1 tsp dried basil 2 TBL chopped fresh parsley and more for garnish 2 TBL butter 2 cups deveined shrimp (about 1 pound) Fresh - lemon if wanted for the scampi and garlic 1. In a large skillet, over medium heat, melt butter and sauté onions and garlic, about 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove mixture to a small bowl and set aside. 2. Salt and pepper chicken breasts and lightly dust with flour. In butter remaining in the skillet, brown chicken over medium-high heat until golden on all sides. Remove from skillet and arrange pieces in a baking-serving dish. 3. Preheat oven to 325. Deglaze skillet by adding tomato sauce, wine, basil, parsley and reserved onion mixture. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Spoon sauce over chicken and cover with foil. You can refrigerate it at this point or bake for 25-35 minutes or until juices run clear when pierced with a fork. Bake 15-20 minutes, longer if chicken was refrigerated. 4. While chicken is baking, or 15-20 minutes before serving, heat 2-tablespoon butter in a skillet and add shrimp. Sauté over low heat for 3-5 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle shrimp over chicken and garnish with parsley. * I treat the shrimp like scamp and sauté garlic with the butter then add a touch of lemon.

18: Roasted Turkey with Make-Ahead Gravy 1 (12-pound) fresh or frozen turkey, thawed olive oil and choice of seasonings Remove the giblets and neck from turkey. Rinse and trim excess fat. Brush turkey with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the turkey, breast side up, on a roasting rack in a roasting pan. Cover the turkey with foil securing the foil on the sides of the pan. Bake at 325 for 1- 1/2 hours; remove foil, and baste turkey with pan juices. Bake an additional hour or until a thermometer inserted in the meaty part of the thigh registers 165, basting every 30 minutes. Remove turkey from oven; let stand at least 30 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, rinse and cook giblets in a saucepan cover with water. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Remove giblets, cool and chop for the gravy. Save giblet water to add to gravy if needed. Make-Ahead Gravy: 3 TBL all-purpose flour 2 TBL butter, softened 5 cups Chicken stock, divided 2 tsp chopped fresh sage or 1/2 tsp dry sage 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper Prepare this up to a day in advance. 1. Combine the flour and butter in a medium bowl. 2. Heat a large saucepan over high heat. Add 2 cups stock; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 5 minutes). Add the remaining 3 cups stock; bring to a boil. 3. Stir 1 cup stock into flour mixture, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Pour mixture into saucepan; reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in sage, salt, and black pepper. 4. Add drippings and giblets adjust seasonings. Thin with giblet water

20: Shepherd's Pie with Mushroom Onion Gravy 2 pounds Russet potatoes, washed, peeled and cut into chunks 1 clove garlic, smashed salt 6 TBL butter 1/2 cup half and half freshly ground black pepper 2 TBL vegetable oil 1-1/2 pounds ground beef (85 percent lean) 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 2 TBL tomato paste 1/2 cup low-sodium beef stock (need 2 cups for gravy) 1/2 large onion, finely chopped (need the other half for gravy) 1 red bell pepper, julienned 2 zucchini, julienned (or just throw in some peas) 2 carrots, peeled and grated or julienned 1 tsp Hungarian hot paprika, plus more for garnish 4-8 ounces Havarti cheese, grated (or just use the slices) Mushroom Onion Gravy, recipe follows Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a medium saucepan, cover potatoes and crushed garlic with enough water to cover by 1-inch. Add some salt and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-high and cook until fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes, return to pot, and mash together with 3 tablespoons of the butter and the half and half. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and set aside. In a large pan on medium-high heat, combine 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil. When butter has melted, add beef, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until meat is brown. Stir in tomato paste and saute for a few minutes. Add stock and bring to a simmer. Season and remove mixture to a bowl. In the same pan, add remaining butter and oil and saute onions until almost tender, then add red bell pepper, zucchini, carrots and paprika. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

21: To assemble, in a 9 by 12-inch baking dish layer half of beef, pressing down to pack in, then sprinkle the cheese on evenly. Pour the remaining half of the beef over the cheese and press down. Next, add the sauteed vegetables and top with the mashed potatoes, spreading out with a spatula or the back of a spoon to even out and to form decorative peaks and valleys. Sprinkle top with paprika and bake for 30 minutes or until edges on potatoes turn golden brown. Serve with Mushroom Onion Gravy. Mushroom Onion Gravy: 1/2 large onion, chopped 8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced 3 TBL oil 3 TBL all-purpose flour 1 cup red wine 2 cups beef broth Salt and freshly ground black pepper In a medium saucepan over medium heat, saute onions and mushrooms in oil until tender and mushrooms release their moisture, about 5 minutes. Add flour and stir to evenly coat. Slowly whisk in wine and then the broth. Simmer until thickened and season with salt and pepper, to taste. This will thicken up in about 20 minutes while pie is in the oven.

22: Sauted Tilapia with White Wine and Lemon Sauce Yield: 4 servings 1/2 Cup flour 3 TBL Meyers Lemon Olive Oil or olive oil with a little lemon zest 4 Tilapia Fillets -- fresh Kosher salt and pepper -- to taste White Wine and Lemon Sauce: 1 TBL Meyer Lemon Olive Oil 1 shallot or any onion - roughly chopped 1/2 cup white wine 2 TBL butter 1 TBL fresh parsley 1/2 lemon Place flour in shallow baking dish or pie plate and set aside. Pat fish fillets with a paper towel, season both sides of fillet with salt and pepper and let stand until fillets are glistening with moisture, about 5 minutes. If you going to make the White Wine Sauce -- do it now while the fish is resting. Sauce: In a sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon Lemon Olive Oil over medium heat. Saute shallots until softened and beginning to color, about 1-1/2 minutes. Add wine, increase heat to high and bring to boil, boil until reduced to 1/4 cup -- about 3-5 minutes. Remove saucepan from burner and pour into another container, such as a coffee mug or creamer, through a small strainer to strain out the shallot, and then discard the shallot. Whisk in butter and parsley -- and a squeeze of half a lemon. Set aside and keep warm until the fish is done.

23: Coat both sides of fillet with flour and shake off excess and place them on a separate plate or paper towel, preferably in one single layer. Saute the Fish: Heat 2 Tablespoons of the Meyer Lemon Olive Oil over high heat in a large non-stick skillet until oil is shimmering, but not smoking. Place the fillets in a single layer and immediately reduce heat to medium-high. ** Depending on the size of your skillet and the amount of fish your making, you'll have do add more oil and saute the fillets in batches. Without moving the fish, saute for 2 to 3 minutes on each side and until the edges of fillet are opaque and bottoms are lightly browned. Use the fish spatula to gently flip fillets. Transfer fillets onto plate and if you're using the sauce, pour it over now and serve.

31: Toffee 1 cup butter 1 cup sugar 2 TBL water 1 cup chopped almonds 1/2 cup finely chopped almonds 1 cup or a little more – milk chocolate chips PREPARE EVERYTHING AHEAD OF TIME! Greased cookie sheet Melt butter, add sugar and water – bring to a boil then add 1 cup chopped almonds. Cook on med-high to high stirring constantly for about 4-5 minutes. Mixture will darken and smoke (it will actually be burning). Quickly pour mixture onto greased cookie sheet, spread evenly. Sprinkle with bag of chocolate chips. Let sit a short time to melt and spread and sprinkle with cup of finely chopped almonds. Put in the fridge or just sit outside for a while to cool. Break apart and store in an airtight container. I use my big spaghetti pot and a wooden spoon. The real trick here is getting it to cook to the right temperature. I wait till it just starts to smoke and then keep stirring a little longer before taking it off. It really needs to get a little darker to get that nice smoky flavor.